He let out a laugh without desire, empty of all emotion. I felt another stab of sadness.
“If I had asked her for the divorce myself, she would be alive now,” he said, with a sigh. “Or if I had told her the truth from the beginning. But I was so afraid that I was a fool. I killed her. I should have stayed to defend my position instead of running away with the children. I should have fought for Anya. Maybe that would have opened her eyes, and she would have learned not to fear me…”
“I would have done anything for my wife, Johanna. Anything,” he concluded, with his teeth clenched. “I was sure that when Anya understood it, we would be fine again. And I did it wrong. I want to ask her forgiveness for everything, and I don’t know how.”
My hand had stopped gripping his forearm and ended up on
